Advice on sources and research strategies for genealogy in the United Kingdom and Australia, plus references to specific individuals. If your ancestor had a brother, sister or cousin who emigrated to Australia, our records including very informative death certificates may give family details not available in the UK. Explore the options in the tabs below, in the sidebar and at the bottom of the page.

24 July 2010

I don't know how accurate this is, but http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Muzzall says that MUSTELL is derived from a name of Old French origin, introduced into England after 1066. MUSTELL seems to be rather uncommon in the UK. I am researching Anne MUSTELL who married William James WEBSTER in 1845 at St. Peter's Church, Walworth, in the parish of St. Mary Newington, Surrey, England. Anne's parents were Thomas MUSTELL (gentleman, deceased by 1845) and Anne VAUGHAN. I would like to know whether Anne had any siblings, or whether there is any truth in the family legend that says 'Anne MUSTELL was a grand-daughter of Mrs FRY (celebrated Quakeress)'.

Until 5pm AEST 26 July 2010 you can order transcriptions of NSW certificates via Marilyn Rowan for just $15 each. I have used Marilyn's service many times and I highly recommend it. If you want a certificate for family history purposes, a transcription is your best option - much cheaper than buying it from the Registry! (Unfortunately there are no transcription agents in Queensland yet.)

The Australian Government site, http://www.ipaustralia.gov.au/, has a drop-down list to select whether you want to search patents or trademarks. I seemed to wade through many pages before I reached one where I could do a search. An unusual feature is the ability to drag and drop data labels to change their order in your results. You can also add or remove a label by dragging it into or out of the list of unused labels. I recommend including the label 'Agent Name', because in my search it revealed the inventor's address.

On the IPAustralia site I searched for 'Cunnamulla' (my home town) and found that in 1981 Stuart Charles BARKLA applied for a patent for a folding stock feeder. I did not find a similar reference using Google Patent Search, but I was pressed for time and may have missed it.

The Trademarks section has a link to 'Search for Australian Surnames'. (I quote) 'This is a tool used to assess how common a surname is in Australia. Trade Marks that consist of common surnames may be difficult to register.' I tested this tool with surnames from my mother's family, and the counts were RIENECKER=46, STEINKE=146. For my friend Helen, who is doing a one-name study, I found QUESTED=67.

In last week's challenge - using Google Scholar - I found a United States patent issued to William Stewart BENTLEY, Mooning, Cunnamulla, Queensland, Australia, for inventing an ornamental design for a bread bun.

10 July 2010

Challenge no.27 was 'Explore Google Scholar, http://scholar.google.com/. It's difficult to browse the features of this tool, so bring some surnames to use in your test searches.'

Surname searches did not reveal anything very interesting, so I selected 'Articles and Patents - include citations' and looked for 'Cunnamulla' (my home town). Results ranged from 'The Role of the Church in the Rural Communities of South West Queensland' (a downloadable document) to a study guide (teacher's notes) for the film 'Cunnamulla'. The book 'Cunnamulla, a brief history of the Paroo Shire' (T.W. Blake; Paroo Shire Council, Cunnamulla, Queensland, 1979) has been cited in several articles including 'Paroo tracks: water and stock routes in arid Australia'. Other titles cited include 'The Geology of the Quilpie, Charleville, Toompine, Wyandra, Eulo and Cunnamulla'.

Using Advanced Scholar Search to add the exact phrase 'patent number', I found a United States patent issued to inventor William Stewart BENTLEY, Mooning, Cunnamulla, in 2000, for an ornamental design for a bread bun.

6 July 2010

In just two weeks (22 Jan - 3 Feb 1881) George and Mary HUDSON lost three young sons: Joseph Ernest (age 6), Bertie (2) and Charles Edwin (8). Joseph's death certificate says he died from 'measles and laryngitis'. George, Mary and all but one of their surviving children emigrated to Queensland, Australia, in search of a healthier climate. Their doctor doubted whether my grandmother Florence (aged five at the time) would survive the voyage. She delighted in telling this story, because she lived to be 99!

5 July 2010

Today I found three cards filed incorrectly in the Card Index to Immigrants compiled by Queensland State Archives:

(1) 'PECKS William' is filed among cards for PECK without an 's'.

(2) 'PICKUP William' is filed after PICKVANCE.

(3) 'PIERCE William and family' is filed among cards for PICKUP.

I have asked the Archives to fix this.

These cards (in the Public Search Room at Qld State Archives) index various 19th and 20th century immigration records that are NOT covered by the Archives' on-line indexes. See the advice on my Web site.

3 July 2010

Family stories allege that our GIBLETT family originated in France with the surname 'DE GIBLETT'. My ancestor was Richard GIBLETT (born c1751 Frome, Somerset, England). He married Sarah SHEPPARD or SHEPHERD in 1783. Children of Richard and Sarah GIBLETT were Ann (d.1787); John (woollen cloth manufacturer of Frome); Samuel; Thomas (mar. Isabella HOOPER); Mary (mar. James WEBSTER); Sarah (mar. George WEBSTER); Elizabeth.

Can anyone confirm that some members of this family were buried in Nunhead/Camberwell cemeteries, London? Is there a connection between Richard GIBLETT of Frome and John GIBLETT who married Sarah WHITFIELD at St. Marylebone in London in 1793? Some of that family emigrated to Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia.

2 July 2010

LostCousins.com is probably the only web site that identifies (with virtually 100% accuracy) people who share the same ancestors. You do not waste time corresponding with people who are not related to you! I have found several new relatives here; and the free email newsletter has lots of useful tips.

To use LostCousins you need to find your relatives in the census for England and Wales 1841, 1881 or 1911; Scotland 1881; United States 1880 & 1940; Canada 1881; or Ireland 1911. Then at LostCousins you enter the census source/page details for those names. Read the instructions carefully (see 'Information - Read this first') before gathering and entering data, as requirements for each census are different. If you prepare well, entering the data is a lot quicker.

Be sure to include brothers and sisters of your direct ancestors, because it is their descendants who are the 'cousins' you want to contact.

After entering some relatives, click 'Search', and the system checks whether someone else has entered identical data. Remember to log in periodically, go to your 'My Ancestors' page and repeat the search.

It is FREE to join LostCousins and enter your data, but I choose to pay a small annual subscription (about $10) so that there are no restrictions on contacting my distant cousins when they are identified by the extremely accurate matching system.

The more people who enter census data for direct ancestors and their siblings, the greater the chances of finding our 'lost cousins'. Maybe you are my distant relative! I'm waiting to find you - so please... start using LostCousins today!

(This post first appeared on http://uk-australia.blogspot.com.au/2010/07/follow-friday-lostcousinscom.html. 'Follow Friday' is a theme used by Geneabloggers.)